Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Douglas

For one person, living is cheaper in Medellin: $1,639 a month against $2,644 in Douglas, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
128

Cost of Living Index in Douglas
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Douglas Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,639

/mo nomad

Douglas

🇮🇲 Isle of Man

$2,644

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Douglas

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Medellin and in Douglas actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,639 in Medellin versus $2,644 in Douglas.

Medellin $1,639
Douglas $2,644

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,413 in Medellin versus $4,113 in Douglas.

Medellin $2,413
Douglas $4,113

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,186 in Medellin versus $5,581 in Douglas.

Medellin $3,186
Douglas $5,581

Living in Medellin costs roughly 38% less than in Douglas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medellin 20% above, Douglas 94% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 COP 26.1K

$28.36 IMP 21.18

-71.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.05 COP 151.9K

$119 IMP 89.1

-60.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.7K

$11.84 IMP 8.85

-19.76%

Cappuccino

$3.01 COP 9,735

$5.15 IMP 3.84

-41.55%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 COP 5,809

$2.76 IMP 2.06

-34.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 COP 4,561

$2.18 IMP 1.63

-35.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$6.49 IMP 4.85

-51.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.75 COP 18.6K

$6.08 IMP 4.55

-5.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 COP 4,876

$2.44 IMP 1.82

-38.11%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 COP 7,678

$2.64 IMP 1.97

-9.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 COP 5,720

$2.10 IMP 1.57

-15.71%

Eggs

$2.89 COP 9,333

$5.27 IMP 3.93

-45.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$7.98 IMP 5.96

27.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.87 COP 31.9K

$8.48 IMP 6.33

16.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.99 COP 45.2K

$12.57 IMP 9.39

11.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.97 COP 12.8K

$3.04 IMP 2.27

30.59%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 COP 5,012

$1.80 IMP 1.34

-13.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,048

$3.79 IMP 2.83

-42.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 COP 7,051

$3.60 IMP 2.69

-39.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 COP 6,337

$3.02 IMP 2.26

-35.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 COP 5,132

$3.03 IMP 2.26

-47.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 COP 3,699

$2.07 IMP 1.55

-44.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 COP 4,014

$2.64 IMP 1.97

-53.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 COP 12.8K

$22.86 IMP 17.08

-82.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.68 COP 44.2K

$11.99 IMP 8.95

14.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 COP 5,359

$4.39 IMP 3.28

-62.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 COP 7,291

$4.25 IMP 3.17

-46.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.17 COP 3,771

$2.96 IMP 2.21

-60.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$77.4 COP 249.8K

$96.7 IMP 72.2

-19.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.27 COP 4,094

$5.08 IMP 3.79

-75.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.05 COP 6,612

$1.42 IMP 1.06

44.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.55 COP 27.6K

$80.0 IMP 59.8

-89.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 COP 4,349

$1.99 IMP 1.48

-32.16%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$34.1K COP 110.0M

$43.8K IMP 32.7K

-22.26%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$34.7K COP 111.9M

$43.8K IMP 32.7K

-20.83%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$170 COP 547.8K

$339 IMP 253

-49.89%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$13.55 COP 43.8K

$63.1 IMP 47.16

-78.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.07 COP 90.6K

$74.4 IMP 55.6

-62.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.70 COP 141.1K

$66.5 IMP 49.68

-34.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.19 COP 55.5K

$20.26 IMP 15.13

-15.15%

Cinema Ticket

$6.91 COP 22.3K

$16.01 IMP 11.96

-56.84%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$797 COP 2.6M

$1,784 IMP 1,333

-55.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,112 COP 29.4M

$52.0K IMP 38.8K

-82.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.7 COP 273.5K

$99.3 IMP 74.2

-14.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.0 COP 187.2K

$45.02 IMP 33.63

28.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$135 COP 435.8K

$111 IMP 83.2

21.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 316.0K

$70.7 IMP 52.8

38.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,208 COP 3.9M

$1,245 IMP 930

-2.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$642 COP 2.1M

$1,061 IMP 792

-39.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 COP 6.5M

$2,289 IMP 1,710

-11.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 COP 3.3M

$2,056 IMP 1,536

-50.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,170 COP 13.5M

$5,053 IMP 3,774

-17.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 COP 6.2M

$3,927 IMP 2,933

-51.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$657 COP 2.1M

$2,971 IMP 2,220

-77.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

4.76

129.83%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Medellin: October 25, 2026

Last update for Douglas: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$642 39.1%

Douglas

$1.1K 40.1% 65.3% $419

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$297 18.1%

Douglas

$353 13.4% 18.8% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$211 12.9%

Douglas

$476 18% 125% $265

Eating Out

Medellin

$170 10.4%

Douglas

$389 14.7% 129% $219

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$169 10.3%

Douglas

$147 5.6% 13.1% $22

Getting Around

Medellin

$94 5.7%

Douglas

$121 4.6% 29.1% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.5%

Douglas

$99 3.7% 71.2% $41

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,208 in Medellin and $1,245 in Douglas. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Douglas pays about 4.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $47 in Medellin vs $119 in Douglas for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $297 vs $353 per month, with Medellin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇮🇲 Douglas

🕒 Local time

23:32 11:32 PM

04:32 4:32 AM

5 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

26,218 Capital

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Isle of Man Pound IMP £

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 IMP = 1.34 USD

1 IMP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IMP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,605 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

Isle of Man Pound exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 IMP (1 IMP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 IMP (1 IMP = 1.2 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medellin Douglas 8,220 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Douglas

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Medellin vs Douglas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Medellin is about 38% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, utilities, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 78% lower in Medellin. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,208 in Medellin versus $1,245 in Douglas. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,639 per month in Medellin versus $2,644 in Douglas – Medellin is about 38% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Medellin runs roughly 20% less than in Douglas. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $1,639 in Medellin versus $2,644 in Douglas, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Medellin but tight or insufficient in Douglas. The gap between the two cities makes Medellin the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Medellin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Douglas. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.